Government

A bloc of Lancaster County Council members representing the county’s central districts voted Monday night to oust outspoken District 7 Indian Land planning commissioner Jerry Holt by preventing his appointment to a third term.
The move was the second attempt to eject Holt from the commission. It came just two weeks after the same council members blocked the appointment of Waylon Wilson, another outspoken Indian Land nominee to the Board of Zoning Appeals.

Lancaster City Council will closely scrutinize employee overtime in the upcoming year after one of its members questioned the matter at length last Tuesday night.
Following the scheduled public hearing on the city’s $33.9 million proposed 2017-18 budget, councilwoman Hazel Taylor made a motion to delete $15,000 in overtime expense from the Support Services Division.

Van Wyck residents will go to the polls Aug. 15 to decide if their community will incorporate, a defensive move against being gobbled up by the proposed Indian Land municipality.
News of the special election date came Friday, nearly a year and a half after Van Wyck began its effort in an attempt to preserve its rural way of life. The community has about 2,500 residents.

The Heath Springs Town Council this week unanimously gave final approval to a $344,414 budget for fiscal 2017-18 – a $16,700 decrease from the current budget.
Town Administrator Tony Starnes said the budget dropped because the town will not renew its contract with the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office to station an officer in Heath Springs during certain hours. The contract was going to rise from $23,000 per year to $38,500. It expires June 30.

An analysis of Lancaster County voting in Tuesday’s congressional election shows that the most rural precincts and the fast-growing Panhandle went strongly for Republican Ralph Norman, and the greater Lancaster area swung hard for Democrat Archie Parnell.
Norman won the day overall in the county – 55 percent to 44 percent – helped by the expected huge turnout in Sun City Carolina Lakes, which had more than twice as much voter turnout as the whole county, at 41 percent.

KERSHAW – For the first time ever, the budget for the town of Kershaw will top $4 million next fiscal year.
The current budget, which runs through June 30, is $3.9 million.
As unanimously passed by town council Wednesday night, the 2017-18 budget raises the property tax millage rate to 82 mills from 77 mills in the current budget.

Lancaster City Council passed first reading of its $33.9 million fiscal 2017-18 budget Tuesday.
The vote was 6-0, with council member Tamara Green Garris absent due to an out-of-state family commitment.
As written, the proposed budget raises the property tax millage rate to 178.5 from 176.4 in the current budget. The millage increase means an $8.40 property tax increase on a home in the city valued at $100,000 and assessed at 4 percent.

Voters in the 5th Congressional District can cast absentee votes now or wait until the special election Tuesday, June 20, to replace Indian Land’s Mick Mulvaney in the U.S. House.
Mulvaney’s seat became open when President Donald Trump appointed him director of his Office of Budget and Management.
The candidates on the special election ballot will be:
◆ Libertarian Victor Kocher
◆ David Kulma with the Green Party
◆ Republican Ralph Norman
◆ Democrat Archie Parnell
◆ Josh Thornton with the American Party

SCETV forum tonightSouth Carolina ETV will broadcast a 5th District candidate forum at 7:30 tonight featuring Democrat Archie Parnell, Republican Ralph Norman, David Kulma of the Green Party and Josh Thornton of the American Party. The moderator is Charles Bierbauer, dean of USC’s College of Information and Communications and a former CNN correspondent.